The great plateau of Pantokrator lies at a height of 700 metres above sea-level. The summit, with its monastery and communications aerials, stands to the north of the plateau. The monastery was built in 1347 by the inhabitants of the 23 surrounding villages, but it was utterly destroyed around 1537. The church which stands today was built in the 17th century and its facade in the 19th. On August 6th, the biggest festival on the island takes place here, and in the evening people ascend footpaths to the monastery, carrying candles and torches. The ground is rocky,but amongst the low hills little pockets of soil have formed like 'lakes' of green. These pockets used to be productive, growing corn and wheat, but today they are used only for the grazing of goats. Signs of former land use exist in the threshing-floors (alonia), the drystone boundary walls, the stone water cisterns and the isolated buildings which once housed the farmers at harvest time. The area is a paradise for walkers, who can roam over it at will, there being no thick vegetation or crags to block the route. And you may gather saffron crocus, that amazing flower used in cooking. The way up Pantokrator is marked by many mountain villages where people live exclusively from animal husbandry and olive culture. There are also many abandoned villages whose residents, once the threat of pirate attacks had diminished, moved down to the lower and more fertile regions.
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